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Court Orders Russian Sect Leader Konstantin Rudnev Returned to Federal Prison

Judges said his capacity for international travel, access to funds and the gravity of trafficking allegations create a concrete flight risk that requires custody after a full medical check before transfer.

Overview

  • The Cámara Federal de Casación Penal revoked Rudnev’s house arrest and directed his transfer to a Servicio Penitenciario Federal unit, but conditioned any move on a comprehensive medical evaluation.
  • The court cited lack of sufficient ties to Argentina, proven international mobility, significant financial means and links to a transnational criminal structure as reasons to overturn home detention.
  • Rudnev is recovering from a recent inguinal hernia operation and his lawyers have announced an appeal to the Corte Suprema to try to keep him under medical supervision at home.
  • He faces federal charges that include leading a coercive transnational group known as Ashram Shambala and alleged crimes such as human trafficking for sexual exploitation, reduction to servitude, falsification of civil status and aggravated transport of drugs.
  • The probe began after hospital staff in Bariloche raised concerns about a pregnant woman in March 2025, and the revocation could speed formal pretrial custody while raising questions about how authorities will balance his medical needs with secure detention.